Horry County receives $2M to improve low-income communities

If where you live is in need of a face lift, Horry County is here to help. (Source: WMBF News)

HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) – If where you live is in need of a face lift, Horry County is here to help. It will spend $2 million dollars specifically to spruce up your neighborhoods.

Every year the county gets federal money to help neighborhoods that are in need. The cities of Conway and Myrtle Beach get a piece of the pie.

Right now organizers are specifically working with the Race Path community in Myrtle Beach and expanding to the Bucksport and Freemont neighborhoods, and looking to find more neighborhoods that need help.

There's also a program called the Emergency Solutions Program which receives $200,000 a year. Last year that program helped 120 families.

"The funding will go towards helping them with back rent, helping with utility payments and if someone is currently on the street, they can go to Echo and they will help them find an apartment and put them in there," said Horry County Director of Community Development Courtney Kain.

Now developers are hosting a public input meeting to hear your voice.

At the meeting organizers want to know if you agree with where the funding is going, and, if not, the ideas you have as to where it should go.

Community developers want you to feel comfortable on your front porch - and feel like you can live in a vibrant place and can sustain yourself.That's why organizers are asking to work closely with you, but it's an approach that requires you to participate.

Much of the money usually goes to rehabilitating homes. But it could be problems with roadways, drainage, or improvements to water and sewer. Grants can also be used to fund development of community facilities, senior centers, daycares or support after school activities.

"Everyone in Horry County is welcome to participate. Our funds are geared towards low-income communities, low-income households and it's always good to hear what the needs of those communities are," Kain said.

The public meeting is Thursday afternoon at 4 at the Horry County Government and Justice Center in the conference room. The building is located on Second Avenue in Conway.

A lawsuit filed by a former Florence County student alleges the school district knew a former school resource officer, fired after allegations surfaced he sexually assaulted the minor, had a history of misconduct.

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Surveillance cameras caught footage of a man stealing a bicycle from a home in The Market Common. (Source: Ken Carnesi)

A homeowner in The Market Common wants people to be aware of a theft that happened right on his front porch. He shared video surveillance with WMBF News from two cameras that capture the suspect stealing a bicycle.

A homeowner in The Market Common wants people to be aware of a theft that happened right on his front porch. He shared video surveillance with WMBF News from two cameras that capture the suspect stealing a bicycle.

It sounds just like the plot line of a television show- a woman naked and afraid, lost in remote woods. But Lisa Theris’ journey back to civilization was real life and a real struggle that lasted a month in Bullock County.

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